Niš Airport likely to become airline base


Niš Constantine the Great Airport in south-eastern Serbia, which has seen triple digit passenger growth this year, is likely to become an airline base in 2017, General Manager, Vladica Djurdjanović, has said. According to Mr Djurdjanović, the airport currently lacks the capacity to act as a base, however, this is set to change with the completion of a multi million euro expansion project to begin this month. “There is interest from airlines to set up a base but we have to finish a few things first. I am hopeful that the planned investments will be completed next year and that an airline will then base an aircraft in Niš”, Mr Djurdjanović said. He added, “Paris, London and Stockholm are destinations of interest and carriers are aware of this but Niš Airport needs to be ready for an airline to set up a base”.

Last year, Mr Djurdjanović said Wizz Air was considering the possibility of basing an aircraft in the city. “In order for them [Wizz Air] to boost services, certain conditions must be met, such as someplace where they can accommodate their maintenance staff and aircraft, because Wizz Air wants to base one jet at Niš Airport”, the General Manager said at the time. He added, “Once they do so, it will result in at least three to four flights per day, seven days a week. That’s around 25 to 28 weekly flights”. On the other hand, Rynair has said it currently has no plans to station a jet in the city. “We look forward to opening additional services in the future. Basing an aircraft is currently not an option for us, but developments take place quickly with Ryanair. Of course, this does not mean that Rynaiar will not continue expanding its network from Niš and attributing to its passenger growth", the airline's Marketing Executive for Italy, Greece, Croatia, Montenegro and Serbia, Chiara Ravara, noted recently.

Niš Airport following expansion, source: aviatica

Constantine the Great Airport plans to overhaul its terminal by expanding check-in and boarding space, as well as building a new exterior and fixing the roof. The project is being funded jointly by the Serbian government and local authorities. Furthermore, the Serbia and Montenegro Air Traffic Services Agency (SMATSA) plans to start construction of a new control tower next year and will invest a million euros in an instrument landing system (ILS), which provides guidance to aircraft approaching and landing on a runway during low ceilings or reduced visibility due to fog, rain or snow. Niš Airport has handled over 100.000 passengers this year and the figure is expected to grow to over 300.000 in 2017. Recently, Swiss International Air Lines confirmed it would launch flights from Zurich to Niš next April, joining Wizz Air and Ryanair in serving the airport.

Comments

  1. Anonymous09:05

    I think Wizz Air would make the most sense. Same like they did in Tuzla.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Nemjee09:06

    Nice to see that Nis will keep the Cyrillic titles on the terminal.

    If Wizz Air does base an aircraft, I really wonder what additional routes they might open. I am sure most of the routes they currently operate will be increased to three or four weekly.
    Maybe they could think outside the box and actually launch a Greek island destination like they did from BEG some years ago.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:12

      Paris (Bouveas), London (Luton) and Stockholm (Skavsta), which are missing, will be surely served by Wizz, so I'm afraid that they won't think outside the box at all... All I can see are more German routes, but Greek Islands definitely not

      Delete
    2. Nemjee15:34

      Well, some years ago Jat did operate some summer flights to HER. I think there is some charter potential from INI.

      Delete
  3. Anonymous09:23

    Slightly OT: Just one question, I saw picture of INI airport on Wikipedia and I was quite surprised to see that much planes there at once (10 big birds and few smaller ones). So question is: when's this photo taken: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0c/Aeronis.jpg/1280px-Aeronis.jpg Thank you in advance!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:45

      Arround 2005, during one of the foggy days in Belgrade

      Delete
    2. Anonymous11:23

      Thank you

      Delete
  4. Anonymous09:29

    Bravo Niš!
    Shame that Belgrade Airlines does not want to tap into Niš potential.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Veoma dobre i obecavajuce vesti iz Nisa za istocnu i jugoistocnu Srbiju.Iskreno ocekujem (mo) otvaranje Kraljevacke Morave i Uzicke Ponikve. Liberizacijom vazdusnog prevoza oslobadja se potencijal putnika i kargo prevoza. Zavrsetkom auto puteva prema Atini, Sofiji, Cacku, sa nastavkom gradnje Preljina-Pojate i Cacak-Pozega, otvara se moucnost dolaska auto putevima na ove aerodrome izmedju deset i osamdeset minuta. Gotovo iz svih gradova juzno od Valjeva, Mladenovca i Pozarevca. Naravno podrazumevajuci i ova tri grada. Ukljucivanjem LCC avio kompanija u prevoz putnika i u Srbiji, ljudima se otvara mogucnost da i sa siromasnim mogucnostima se mogu kretati na srednje i duze destinacije. Ovo je nacin da se monopol odstrani a ljudima omogucava MOGUCNOST i IZBOR!. Zbog nepravilnog sagledanja buducih potreba na svim nabrojanim aerodromima su pravljene veoma male avio platforme, rulne staze... Nadajmo se da ce se nasa Vlada okrenuti brzoj transformaciji ovih, ukljucujuci i Beogradski u otvaranje novih mogucnosti i perspektive putnicke avijacije. Za potrebe i usluge kako Srbije, tako i gravitirajucih podrucaja sa druge strane Srpskih granica. Zaista 2017 godina ce biti ozbiljan pocetak komercijalne avijacije. Otvaranje i dogradnja sva za sada cetiri Srpska aerodroma. Avio samit u Beogradu za par dana otvorice novu perspektivu i za Srbiju. Dobro bi bilo da Aerodrom Morava Kraljevo omoguci izgradnjom industrijsog parka, dolazak Boingu i mogucnost remonta ili proizvodnje
      avio komponenti... Sa time bi se vrsila decentralizacija drzave Srbije... Voleo bih da politicari mogu imati ovu ideju. Moguli?. Nama ostaje nada, ljudima koji upravljaju sansa da ostvare, a ljudima mogucnost da se ne sele od Sidneja do Ankoridza. Nisu srecan pocetak stvarnih promena. Ocekivani avo samit, od utorka da nam podari radosti konkretnim investicijama i udomljenje u Srbiju i jugo istocnu Evropu.
      Sa zimovanja u Otadzbini
      Rodney & Entusiastic Team - R & ET. Kraljevo + Sydney

      Delete
    2. Anonymous11:55

      U kom svetu ti zivis Radovane! Jasno je da ne zivis u Srbiji, ali iz dana u dan se divim tvojim postovima koji veze sa realnoscu nemaju!

      Delete
    3. Anonymous12:29

      @11:55 on spolja najbolje moze da vidi promene. Za razliku od nas, nije politicki ostrascen. Nas specijalitet je omalovazavanje svakog napretka. Pre samo nesto vise od tri godine, nacionalni avio prevoznik je bio pred kolapsom a aerodrom u Nišu je skupljao paucinu. Od tada je BEG duplirao broj putnika, Niš ima devet putnickih i jednu kargo liniju, a pored konpletno modernizovane flote i otvaranja inerkontinentalnog saobracaja naruceno je i 10 novih AA320neo. Ne, nista se nije dogodilo, sve je stvarno lose, cika Radovanu se samo prividja..

      Delete
    4. Anonymous13:03

      Свака част на одговору, а такође и Радовану! ��

      Delete
    5. Postovani Anon 11:55 AM.
      Vi ste verujem dobro upucen covek. Za razliku od mene. Sto me pitate u kom svetu zivim?. Iskreno vam kazem da zivim u svetu gde uopsteno govoreci, ljudi i vrednosti su gotovo diametralno suprotno postavljene u svakodnevnom zivotu. Gde su racuni odnosa medju ljudima i po rema drzavi veoma korektni. Gde vlada stiti ljude, ali NEUPRAVLJA sa njima. Sa avionima, aerodromima, putnicima... druzim se u zadnjih 47 godina do sada. Posetivsi svaku trecu zemlju i vise od 150 gradova na svim kontinentima... I jos mnogo toga. Ukljucujuci i moju Otadzbinu rodjenja, u zadnjih gotovo pedeset godina mojeg skromnog zivota. Eto to je moj svet gde eto vidim da je uzaludno?. Upravo zbog moje nerealnosti prema zivotu i razvoju ljudi i Srbije koje postujem. Oprostite sto sam povredio sa postovima. Iz Kraljeva ili Sidneja. Sve jedno. Vama svako dobro u poslu koji obavljate.
      Radovan.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous18:05

      Bravo Rodney, uvijek fin.

      Delete
    7. Anonymous23:53

      Kao sto i prica za Nis nije imala veze sa realnoscu...pa se desila

      Delete
    8. Anonymous01:24

      Kao što to i priča za Niš nije imala veze sa realnošću ...pa se desila
      (Što nemožeš pravilno da izpišeš?)

      Delete
    9. Nemjee08:01

      nemožeš -> не можеш
      izpišeš -> испишеш

      Delete
  5. One of Kucko's bases maybe?? 😃

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:38

      Haha never say never with Kucko :D

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:46

      Kucko never has a problem in saying anything - problem is, he never does what he says

      Delete
  6. Anonymous10:12

    I think it will be very hard for INI to develop as a base. Within a radius of 250 km there a lot of major airports - BEG, SOF, SKP and PRN

    ReplyDelete
  7. Anonymous10:40

    I like the look of the terminal after reconstruction. Much better than the awful brown color.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anonymous11:15

    I wonder what all those people who said that there is no potential for INI, have to say now.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous11:49

      All the best INI! Most didn't believe that Tuzla would work either, but it turns out that was actually an excellent move! Good luck Nis!

      Delete
    2. Nemjee15:32

      You keep on repeating the same thing over and over again so I will repeat myself once more: no one said INI didn't have the potential, there was a general consensus on here that INI could only become a functional airport thanks to LCCs- which is true.

      That said, there is no point for JU to launch INI flights. It doesn't fit their business model.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous16:31

      +1 nemjee

      Delete
    4. Anonymous17:30

      No, there is both demand and potential for INI-BEG 2-3x daily - but as long as JU lacks regional aircrafts so badly there is no chance. Also, JU is called AirSerbia after all, not FlyBelgrade. Serbia could or rather should also consider a PSO for the first few years to stimulate route development - seems JU and EY need to be "forced" into their luck.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous17:38

      I'm not sure if PSO is regulated in Serbia yet. As far as I know there needs to be a legal framework for it, i.e it must be included in the law.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous17:54

      2-3 daily BEG-INI? Those flights would be I assume mostly for connecting, I don't see anyone flying to Beograd or Niš but not connecting further.

      Delete
    7. Nemjee19:55

      No. Serbia does not need any PSO routes and it would be a waste of taxpayers' money that could be used elsewhere.
      Businesses today need to be run professionally and efficiently. I don't see a reason for JU to consider Nis at this point, especially not when there is FR and W6.

      One day when JU further reinforces its European network then we can maybe think of a daily flight to Nis that would depart from BEG at around 14.00.

      Saying that JU should fly from Nis just because it has 'Serbia' in its official name is like saying Ryanair should give discounts to all those called Ryan.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous01:05

      Very bad and stupid argument Nemjee, at least if you'd say Ireland...

      Delete
    9. Anonymous01:19

      Why depart BEG at 14:00? That's the middle of the day.

      Delete
    10. Anonymous01:34

      Ovaj Niš mi je baš "naopak" i to me oduševljava. Sve što je rečeno u ovih 30 godina o INI, svi koncenzusi nazovi stručne javnosti o potencijalima ovog aerodroma, u poslednje dve godine su nišlije razbile u paramparčad. Ajmo redom:
      Prvo su stručnjaci 30 godina bili na stanovištu da INI ne može da pokrije 3 linije i tako se JAT i ponašao, kreni stani, i gle čuda, nije bilo putnika.
      Drugo, kada je krenuo Viz i zatim i Rajan, ta ista stručna javnost sa sve stručnjacima u ministarstvu je konstatovala da eto INI treba da bude loukost aerodrom, da je to državna strategija (samo što je ja nigde napismeno ne videh, verovatno je prenose s kolena na koleno ko junačke narodne pesme i to onaj predkosovski ciklus), da je loukost usluga prava mera sirotinji sa juga...
      I onda im nišlije dovedu Swiss, i to u trenutku kad švajcarci pogase gomilu linija po celoj Ex yu, oni bukvalno presele avio kompaniju iz SKP na INI, toliko o loukost aerodromu... maestralan potez, bravo majstori.
      Treće, kargo saobraćaj, BEG je prvu redovnu kargo liniju dobio pre dve godine, INI ih je stigo i uspostavio prvu redovnu liniju ove godine i već je po količini robe sustigao SKP, a sledeće godine će ih nadmašiti. Stručna javnost je ponovo zatečena jer ne zna odakle sada ta roba. A tek će biti iznenadjeni kada pored haba Instanbul, INI pokrene i kargo hab Cirih sa Swiss.
      Sve ovo za manje od dve godine, pravi košmar za stručnu javnost i sve konsenzuse, i jedva čekam sledeći šok koji će im prirediti sa INI jer očigledno da oni imaju neku prilično tačnu dinamiku šokiranja stručne javnosti i skoro godinu dana drže neverovatan tempo sa dogadjajima.

      Delete
    11. Anonymous06:19

      Wizz bi da napravi bazu ali treba prvo uložiti u obnovu i proširenje. Wizz ne da pare za to, a aerodrom nema pare jer mu Wizz i drugi ne plaćaju dovoljno para. Pare daju lokalna i državna vlast da bi Wizz mogao da ima bazu i da još više para odnosi iz Niša. Država ulaže sa jedne strane u Er Srbiju a sa druge u ono što Wizz zahteva u Nišu. Interesi Er Srbije i Wizza su u suprotnosti, to znači da je vlada Srbije u konfliktu interesa zbog ove investicije.

      Delete
    12. Nemjee08:13

      AnonymousDecember 11, 2016 at 1:05 AM

      I kindly ask you to re-read the above exchange and then think once more why I wrote Ryan and not Ireland.

      AnonymousDecember 11, 2016 at 1:19 AM

      As there is no O&D potential between BEG and INI, JU would have to rely exclusively on transfer passengers. JU's regional bank departs between 12.20 and 14.00. JU would have a similar schedule as SJJ.

      AnonymousDecember 11, 2016 at 1:34 AM

      У Србији се каже ,,прво скочи па реци хоп''. Ја сам одувек говорио да је за Ниш неопходно да добије авио-компаније попут Рајана и Виза једноставно јер су они једини који су у могућности да понуде тако јефтине карте а да притом извуку профит. Свис је у мало другој лиги што се види и по ценама њихових карата.
      Управо сам бацио поглед на њихове цене и карта без пртљага се креће око €170 што ипак није мало, посебно не за Нишлије који су навикли да лете за Берлин за свега 10 евра. И даље не разумем зашто Свис није некако уклопио ове летове са оним из САД-а. Вероватно нису имали довољно ваздухоплова а рачунају да за Ниш има немало локалних путника који би обезбедили рентабилност ове линије.

      Што се тиче робног саобраћаја, то је феноменално и свака им част за Туркиш. Посебно јер ће претворити Ниш у регионални центар. Србија има највећи потенцијал да постане робни центар за северни Балкан али су нам друмови и желензнице у катастрофалном стању.

      Delete
    13. Nemjee08:47

      Ugh... my comment was published but then it disappeared for some reason.

      Delete
    14. Sorry, the system categorised it as spam for some reason and removed it. It has been retrieved.

      Delete
    15. Nemjee09:05

      I guessed so, probably because of Cyrillic. :D

      Delete
    16. Anonymous09:39

      Nis je dobio kargo jer Beograd ima problema sa poletanjem aviona natovarenih municijom preko grada, lete nisko i bucno. Kargo komanije ne vole ogranicenja.

      Delete
  9. Anonymous11:20

    INI should make a capital increase at the market, make an IPO and list at the stock exchange!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous17:45

      You can't be serious.

      Delete
  10. Anonymous11:50

    They need to install ILS before anyone considers setting up a base there.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous12:10

      +1 Seems like SMATSA has delayed that for 2017...

      Delete
    2. Anonymous12:34

      2018 sorry

      Delete
  11. Anonymous12:01

    Good thing they decided to refresh that awful terminal.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Anonymous13:05

    Anyone have any more info about the rumour that easy jet will start flights to Nis?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous17:44

      Just a rumour at this point. But it would be cool to have Wizz, Ryan, and Easy. Better to have this diversity then only one airline like at TZL.

      Delete
  13. Anonymous13:42

    I don't understand what is JU waiting? They should start flying from INI ASAP!! Nis - Stockholm route for example, or even Oslo, considering how many people moved/are moving to Norway lately ...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous14:26

      JU has obviously decided to build a single hub. The costs associated with having another base are probably too high. During Jat-Etihad negotations, the JU side proposed a double daily Belgrade-Nis flight with ATR72, one in the morning and another in the evening but EY side rejected the proposal. Mind you EY also had cra y proposals like a 3AM flight from Belgrade to Tivat.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous14:39

      Only now we see how stupid it is.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous17:36

      INI will soon reach it's limit. A few more low cost routes maybe one or two more legacy carriers and then it will plateau. It will never go above half million passengers.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous01:42

      INI do not need JU any more. They did not even mentioned JU for a long time, and they will be above half a million pax in 2018.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous07:10

      Don't think so Jackie.

      Delete
  14. Anonymous16:51

    Why isn't OSI doing the same like TZL or INI?

    ReplyDelete
  15. Anonymous17:31

    Within two hours drive from Osijek you have ZAG, BEG, & TZL, and BUD is maybe three hours drive. End of story.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous19:49

      Same thing with TSR or INI or even SKP

      Delete
    2. Anonymous21:46

      Osijek has small population base. 4-5 hour drive to Austria, and 2-3 more to Deutschland. So boom, end of story.

      Delete
  16. Anonymous20:15

    how is QR doing in the region?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous00:42

      Double daily from/to ZAG in S17. Don't know for others

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:42

      ... but that isn't yet in the GDS..

      Delete
  17. Anonymous22:14

    This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous22:14

      Svakako su to dobre vesti za INI bice zanimljivo videti koje su nove destinacije i dali ce mozda FRR to bitiNaravno nadam se da ce doci i U2 u INI.
      INN-NS

      Delete

Post a Comment

EX-YU Aviation News does not tolerate insults, excessive swearing, racist, homophobic or any other chauvinist remarks or provocative posts with the intention of creating further arguments. A full list of comment guidelines can be found here. Thank you for your cooperation.